THE ETHNIC TRADITION The Filipino's earliest ancestors travelled ...

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de Panay (Art of the Bisaya-Hiligaynon Language of the Island of Panay), 1618 and 1894, contains a “Lista de varios refranes” (List of Various Proverbs) and a treatise on poesia bisaya or Visayan poetry (Manuel 1986:387-401). Through more than three centuries of Spain’s colonization and four decades of American rule, many European and American literary introduced into the country were adopted and adapted by native writers, especially by those who were educated in Westernized schools. The advent of these Western forms, however, did not necessarily lead to the obliteration of indigenous literature. The wisdom and learning of elders continued to be passed down orally through the generations, reflecting the people’s reaction to changing realities of society under foreign domination. Today, these indigenous forms continue to live not only among those cultural communities hardly touched by Westernization, but even among lowland Christian Filipinos, especially those in rural communities. As documented by Spanish chroniclers and philologists from 1521 to 1898, American anthropologists from 1901 to the present, and Filipino anthropologists and literary scholars in the past century, ethnic literature created by the ordinary folk in the oral tradition may be classed into folk speech, folk songs, epics, and folk narratives. Folk Speech The shortest forms of folk literature, called folk speech, consist of riddles, proverbs, and short poems. Known as bugtong in Tagalog and Pampango, tigmo in Cebuano, burburti in Ilocano, tugma in Ilongo, kabbuñi in Ivatan, and tukudtukud in Tausug, the riddle is a traditional expression using one or more images that refer to an object that has to be guessed. Riddles flex one’s wits, sharpening perception and the capacity to recognize similarities and contrasts. They are also occasions for humor and entertainment. Images from nature or from the material culture of the community may be used as metaphor or object to be guessed. Riddles may come in one, two, three, or four lines. There is no set meter although there is palpable rhythm. Rime tends to be assonantal. This Subanon riddle (Eugenio 1982:419) sensitizes listeners to the natural world around them: Kayo sa Canoojong, bagyohon dili mapalong. (Aninipot) The fire of Burawen can never be put out by hurricane. (Firefly)
This Cebuano tigmo sharpens the wit by confronting the listener with a paradox: Han bata pa nagbabado, Han bagas na, naghuhubo. (Kawayan) Dressed when young, Naked when old. (Bamboo) A proverb has didactic value. Known as salawikain in Tagalog, kasabian in Pampango, sanglitanan in Cebuano, pagsasao in Ilocano, hurubatan in Ilongo, pananahan in Ivatan, and masaalla in Tausug, it uses a metaphor derived from nature or daily life, this time to refer not to an object but to a truth that can apply to different situations in life. In form it is similar to the riddle. This Ilocano pagsasao or proverb underscores the importance of vigilance, using an image familiar to fisherfolk: Iyanud tidanunti Matmaturog nga udang. Water carries away the sleeping shrimp. This Pampango diparan (Hilario-Lacson 1984:21) warns that what looks soft and easy is what binds together. Ing silung malambut Matalik ya igut. A soft lasso Has a tight pull. This Bicol sasabihon (Galdon 1980:166) points out that one who is afraid will never achieve anything: An matakot sa doronDaing aanihon.
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Page 7 and 8: This Tagalog awit describes the dif
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Page 13 and 14: skin down on the tortoise. Angry, t
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THE ETHNIC TRADITION The Filipino's earliest ancestors travelled ...

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